Writing in Reverse

Casting

From the beginning when I started writing, I could never picture my characters in my head.  I had their features memorized.  I knew how their hair looked, it's texture, their eyes, body structure... but I could never put those traits together and actually picture them as an actual person.  People are just so complex, I just can't visualize them. 

I know the physical characteristics Janice has from Island Rush.  She has straight, long brown hair that complements her light skin and highlights her eyes.  I can picture each little thing about her.  Same goes for Casey and for my characters in Handcuffed as well.  Francis has glasses.  Francis has hazel eyes.  Francis has curly brown hair.  But what did Francis look like?  I don't know. I could never put those traits together to make a person.  I don't know what those people look like in my head. 

So, while I was writing Island Rush, I figured that was normal.  That people were so complex, readers couldn't picture them either, fully as a person.  It's strange because I can see a room I'm describing perfectly.  As if that room exists.  I can imagine a dresser.  I can see what a house looks like.  I can see pictures on walls that look as real as my own.  But I couldn't see the people in my stories. It always bothered me that I am not able to imagine them.  So I assumed that neither could my readers.

That's why I decided to pick a cast for my characters.  I thought it would make it more real.  I would be able to put a face to my characters finally and be able to picture them clearly.  It would help me, and it would help my readers I figured by making it so much more real.   

So I began to look through different actors and actresses that I figured had features that matched my characters.  And I based it off that - similarity with each individual feature.  Eventually, that's why I picked Lilly Collins for Janice.  She had brown hair.  She had gentle eyes.  She had the same structure I pictured Janice had.  Same thing went for Casey.  Same thing went for the rest of the cast in Island Rush. 

I noticed after I began placing faces and casting people that it didn't really help me.  Because I still couldn't picture these actors playing my characters. Nobody would be able to match them - especially when I don't even have a full picture of them in my head.  But I figured that it helped my readers at least.  I didn't care for the cast, didn't go by it, but I thought that maybe it helped my readers if they were able to picture them as my characters.  After all, everyone pictures a character differently.  They might see Janice in Lilly Collins even if I don't.

I did the same thing after I was a ways into Handcuffed - and introduced the rest of the characters including Luke's family.  Just like Janice and my characters in Island Rush, I couldn't see what Albany looked like.  She had long, wavy, black hair that was strong enough to support loops.  I can picture her hair perfectly.  But not that hair connecting to any other fragment of the body.  I can picture the color of her honey brown eyes.  But not what they would look like with the rest of her face.  She has a stronger body, with a few curves, but ones that complemented her.  But... I couldn't fit any of that together.  And because of that, I turned to real people to hopefully place those faces.  And I wasn't surprised when it didn't work personally for me this time either.

I think I came close with picking Henry Cavill for Luke.  He in my mind matches with Luke the most and in some cases, I can see him as Luke.  But I began to realize after I made a cast that that was the point.  To me, I could see Henry Cavill as Luke but that was me personally.  And though I had hoped my readers found it to work too, I knew they wouldn't  For the rest of my cast, I find I can't make a connection and I know that some of my readers could.  But some of them can't, I know.

I came to realize that it might have been just me that couldn't picture characters in my head.  I've talked to others, friends on here and people I know, and they tell me that they are able to picture people they make up in their head perfectly.  And I think it's quite amazing really.  For someone to be able to think up the character they are reading or writing about and actually have a perfect picture of them in their head.  I couldn't and still can't manage to do that.  I don't know what any of my characters look like; I can't picture them in my head but I found out that others can.  And if I would have known that fully earlier, I probably wouldn't have made a cast because it distorts people's image they created of my characters, even if I don't have my own image in my head.  My readers do, I realized.  And placing a face to them when it was up to an individual's perspective to picture them wasn't right.  I wouldn't have done it then if I knew people had the ability that I don't. 

So, over all, I regret making a cast.  I don't think they resemble what I was going for to begin with (besides Henry Cavill).  But like I said, that is just me. I doesn't matter how people think they look.  That's something for them to visualize, and not share with others to disrupt their own personal imagination and image of them.  That was the beauty of imagination - it's yours.  Anything can happen.  Characters look as readers picture them, even if I can't do that.  Everybody's Luke and everybody's Albany is different.  I shouldn't have forced a face to them when it was up to my readers to come up with them.  So I no longer will continue with casting actors in any of my future stories.  Besides, it's not like any of them have the potential anyway to play my brilliant characters, right?  Ha-ha.